Nether lands, deeply fascinating

When we are traveling, it is often not the classic sights that occupy us. Often it's simply about the culture - or cultures - of a destination. Because you can cultivate many things. Tulips, for example. Good architecture. Or beach life in the rain. Let's go to the Netherlands.

When the majority of a city lies below sea level, has over 70 bridges and one of the largest seaports in the world, water plays an important role. Canals pop up everywhere, as do water cabs and museum-like harbor cranes. Many things are flowing in Rotterdam. The second largest city in the Netherlands is many things, but not static. Largely destroyed in 1940, the traces of different decades coexist today. Functional buildings mingle with skyscrapers and bridges from different eras. Right in the middle: the Erasmus Bridge, also known as the "Swan" by locals, is indeed a structure of great elegance and lightness. No wonder it has become one of the city's landmarks in relatively little time.

Other flowing elements of the city include coffee, for example. There is no shortage of sources, be it in the bars of the city center or in the Kop van Zuid area, which stretches south of the Erasmus Bridge and is perhaps even more fast-paced than the rest of this vibrant metropolis that feels so much bigger than it is. Kop van Zuid offers food halls, the Hotel New York, reminiscent of the glory days of transatlantic passenger ships, or the Fenix Food Factory, an alternative-inspired and very warm-hearted happy place in an old shabby-chic industrial building.

 

A modern city and a museum at the same time: Rotterdam's facets.

Elegance.

Fries spectacle and tulip bustle

And in the Netherlands, the mayonnaise with the fries is almost a must. For example in the Markthal, this bold counterpart to the open-air weekly market on the doorstep. Rotterdam's wonderful diversity is on display both inside and out, although the spectacle in the Markthal is somewhat more subdued than at the weekly market, whose fishmongers could have come from Asterix's Gallic village. After a potato-based snack, a lot of ramen flows into the bowls on our table in a credibly Japanese bar, and so the Rotterdam discovery tour ends and we toast to this special city, which cultivates its diversity and not only drives its own change, but celebrates it.

 

Fries, Ramen, Gouda: colourful Markthal.

The next day starts rainy, of course, as we are not far from the North Sea. Nevertheless, we set off because we not only want to get to know the "Capital of Cool" better, as Rotterdam has already been called by CNN, but also see other facets of the Netherlands, namely tulips and beaches. Given the relatively short distances, that's not so little for one day, especially if you're heading for rural areas. That's why we have organized a rental car and drive right into the flower fields south of Amsterdam.

First stop: the "Tulperij". It's actually a farm, but at this time of year it's also about tourism, cakes, souvenirs and tea. There is also coffee. And tulips, of course. Some early varieties are already in bloom in the region, otherwise the area around the town of Lisse is full of fields of other flower varieties such as daffodils and hyacinths. Gently fragrant and brightly shining. And they attract a lot of onlookers, so we prefer to keep our rented Mitsubishi out of the worst of the traffic jams on small country roads. Next destination: the beach.

Flower fields near Lisse.

Just a tiny bit of rain

Behind a dune, we drive through the villages and finally reach Katwijk and its endless North Sea beach. Far in the distance, we can see the skyline of The Hague, and very close to us we can see a small restaurant on the beach, where we fortify ourselves with pizza and coffee before strolling along the beach. Rain? Not so wild. The mixture of people, birds, dogs and bicycles distracts us from the icy cold. At least until we decide to turn around and return to the comfort of cool Rotterdam through the pouring rain.

So what remains of this short tour through the Netherlands? Firstly: Rotterdam is a wonderful, lively contrast to the tulip and windmill cliché of the Netherlands. Secondly: Yes, there are still tulips and windmills. Thirdly, the beach is not far away either. And fourthly: all this in a very small area. It's time to come back and discover the rest of the country!

 

There's no bad weather at a beach like that.

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Gut zu wissen

The airport in the Netherlands with the best connections to Switzerland is Amsterdam-Schiphol. We found a good offer with KLM from Basel. The flights themselves were quite pleasant, but Basel airport is more a matter of taste. In addition, KLM did not exactly cover itself in glory with a lost piece of luggage. Incidentally, KLM does not have any employees on site in Basel who could help personally.

Our accommodation in the Netherlands was the Hilton in Rotterdam, a well-located and well-kept hotel in the middle of the city. It is about a 5-minute walk from Rotterdam train station and there is a small garage for car travelers. Avis offered a reliable service in the Netherlands, after we would have had to wait in line for several hours at Hertz, where our original booking would have been - we preferred not to do that.

You won't go hungry in the Netherlands, the offer is varied and colorful. The Markthal in Rotterdam or the Fenix Food Factory alone offer many options. In Katwijk on the beach, we were pleasantly surprised by Sisters Beach.